Corpus Christi Caller-Times Ricardo Baca, media critic

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Friday, September 7, 2001

Fall films heating up

Grab your popcorn and prepare for a night with Pitt, Redford, Washington, Russo, Spacey and a little boy named Harry Potter

Sulley (voiced by John Goodman) will visit kids’ closets this summer in Disney’s ‘Monsters, Inc.’

If you take your popcorn spiked with Raisinets and drenched in faux butter, then you're prepared for this Fall Movie Guide.
Film-wise, fall is traditionally the calm before the holiday storm of blockbuster hits. The pre-holiday season is a little trickier to navigate. This season's offerings include Robert Redford squared, some much-anticipated kid-flicks (including the first "Harry Potter" film), and a pair of Cannes winners ("The Man Who Wasn't There" and "Mulholland Drive" shared this year's best-director honors).
So while the air turns crisp (inside the air-conditioned theater, that is), check out a fall film and let Brad Pitt or Renee Russo light your fire.

Brad Pitt and Robert Redford star in ‘Spy Game.’

Redford-mania
"The Last Castle"
Ol' Robbie Redford rarely acts anymore, so it's strange to see him starring in two films opening within a month of each other. In "The Last Castle," Redford plays an imprisoned Army general who forms an army of his own within the prison walls to battle a corrupt colonel (James Gandolfini). (Oct. 12)
"Spy Game" Brad Pitt and Redford are together again (Redford directed Pitt in 1992's "A River Runs Through It"). This time, Pitt's spy character is imprisoned in China for espionage and Redford's nearly retired CIA agent has to rescue him. Could this be the passing of the flame, both on the screen and off? If you think so, I'm sure Redford would disagree. (Nov. 21)

Role call
"The Man Who Wasn't There"
Joel Coen shared this year's best-director nod at Cannes with a director of another fall film (David Lynch, "Mulholland Drive"). "The Man Who Wasn't There" isn't as easily digested as last year's "O Brother, Where Art Thou?," the musical fantasy brought to life by Joel and his brother/conspirator Ethan Coen, but it looks to be just as rewarding. Set in the '50s, the noir is centered on a barber (Billy Bob Thornton), his cheating wife (Frances McDormand) and her boss/lover (James Gandolfini). (Nov. 9)

Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke stay busy in ‘Training Day.’

"Training Day"
Ethan Hawke is an idealistic young detective under the direction of a seasoned veteran cop played by Denzel Washington in this exploration of the drug scene on a basic criminal level. Real-life Crips and Bloods served as extras, as do Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. (Sept. 21)

Ben Stiller expounds on his supermodel 'Zoolander'

Madcap capers
"Zoolander"
As if basing an entire film on ongoing characters (a la "Saturday Night Live") wasn't sketchy enough, Ben Stiller brings his fashionista supermodel character Zoolander - which Stiller created for a one-time, three-minute stint on the 1996 VH1 Fashion Awards - to the big screen. Derek Zoolander (Stiller) is a clueless male model brainwashed into becoming an assassin for the government. It's outrageous and flamboyant, and with Stiller and co-stars Owen Wilson and Will Ferrell, it might not fall off the runway. (Sept. 28)
"Big Trouble" Not to namedrop or anything, but you can't help but be impressed just by looking at the poster for "Big Trouble." Tim Allen. Renee Russo. Stanley Tucci. Johnny Knoxville. Janeanne Garofalo. Omar Epps. Patrick Warburton. Tom Sizemore. Jason Lee. Even more impressive, it's based on the book of the same name written by Pulitzer-winning humorist Dave Barry and directed by Barry Sonnenfeld ("Get Shorty"). Oh yeah, it's about a nuclear bomb in Miami International Airport and the accidental antics surrounding it. (Sept. 21)

Sci-fi hi-fi

Kevin Spacey and Jeff Bridges work together in ‘K-Pax.’

"K-Pax"
After "Pay it Forward," it's difficult to trust Kevin Spacey in any film under the guise of being uplifting. Here he's a self-proclaimed alien from the planet K-Pax stuck in a mental ward on Earth. His doctor (Jeff Bridges) is trying to figure out his glitch, but meanwhile Spacey's character calms the surrounding patients who all argue over who will be the one that gets to beam back to K-Pax. (Oct. 5)
"Mulholland Drive" The other half of Cannes' best-director honors this year went to David Lynch. This "Drive" started as a pilot for a proposed TV drama, but when the networks passed, a studio approached him about adding another hour, wrapping it up and calling it a film. As with most David Lynch projects, "Drive" follows the stories of many people in a manner that isn't always easy to follow, but it's centered on a woman who suffers from amnesia and can't remember anything about her recent death-defying night. (Oct. 12)

For the kiddies

Sulley (voiced by John Goodman) will visit kids’ closets this summer in Disney’s ‘Monsters, Inc.’

"Monsters, Inc."
People of all ages can sympathize with the kids in "Monsters, Inc." The misshapen monsters of Monstropolis have a magic portal to kids' bedroom closets, and they frighten the children and bottle their screams as energy. But since today's kids are jaded and not easily scared, Monstropolis and its residents are undergoing an energy crisis. Can you tell this film was conceived in California? (Nov. 2)

In ‘Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,’ Daniel Radcliffe plays Harry Potter, who learns on his 11th birthday that he is the orphaned son of two powerful wizards and possesses unique magical powers of his own.

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone"
The students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry have made their way to the big screen thanks to the accomplishments of young Harry Potter. Based on J.K. Rowling's books (which have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide), this is the first in a series of films to star Daniel Radcliffe as Potter, the clever student-wizard with a lightning bolt scar. (Nov. 16)

Pop culture and media critic Ricardo Baca can be reached at 886-3688 or by e-mail at bacar@caller.com

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